Carburetor



T. H. LEET.

CARBU RETOR.

APPLICATION FItED MAY1,1920. 1 133,92 Patented De0.12,1922. r 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Compressed 6111" TINVNTOR.

A TTORNE Y.

T. H. LEET.

CARBURETOR.

. APPLICATION FILED MAY 1. 1920. 1 %38 926, Pagented Dec. 12, 1922.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

A TTORNE Y.

Patented Dec. 12, 1922.

1,438,926 PATENT \OFFICE.

THERON HALE LEET. OF MARYVILLE. MISSOURI. ASSIGNOR TO FRE DERICK LESTER CURFMAN, OF MARYVILLE. MISSOURI.

CARBURETOR.

Application filed May 1,

To (11/ ii /mm if mug (mice/a:

Be it known that I. Tru-znox llama Lin-7r. a citizen of the United States of America. and resident of Maryville, county of Nodaway, State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in (arburetors. of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain improvements in carburetors; and the objects and nature of the invention will be readily understood by those skilled in the art in the light of the following explanations of the accompanying drawings illustrating what I now believe to be the preferred mechanical expression or embodiment of my invention from among other forms, constructions and arrangements within the spirit and scope thereof.

An object of the invention is to provide easily manipulated and controlled means for the production of combustible mixtures of air and hydrocarbons particularly for use in so-called gasoline torches, and whereby the waste of hydrocarbon will be reduced to the minimum, and whereby the proper or desired combustible mixture can be attained and maintained under various conditions and with various grades of liquid hydrocarbons such as various grades of gasoline.

Vith these and other objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features in construction and in combinations and arragements as more fully and particularly set forth and specified hereinafter.

Referring to the accompanying drawings:-

I Fig. 1 is a side elevation of apparatus embodying my invention, dottedlines indicating certain hidden parts.

Fig. 2 is a top plan.

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail sectional views.

In the embodiment illustrated, I show a container 1 for the gasoline or other liquid hydrocarbon that is to be mixed with air to form the combustible mixture. This container is provided with any suitable closure, such as metal screw topcap 2, for closing the mouth of the container against any such air leakage as will interfere with the proper operation of the apparatus. I show this closure formed with a vertical filling opening normally tightly closed by removable screw cap 3. This opening is provided for the in troduction of the gasoline to the container so 1920. Serial No. 373,326.

that the supply of gasoline in the container can be replenished as needed without disturbing the position of the. closure 2 on the container. However. I do not wish to limit my invention to any particular container or. closure therefor.

The combustible mixture is formed in the container by air taking up a suitable proportion of hydrocarbon from the liquid in the container.

The air is preferably received under pressure. through compressed air supply pipe I from any suitable source. and is thus introduced into the container through suitable passages as hereinafter described.

The combustible mixture is carried off from the container through any suitable offtake pipe by which it is delivered. as will be understood by those skilled in the art. to the tubing leading to the point where the mixture is to be utilized. The compressed air is delivered to the container through a suitable manually operated or finger controlled cut off and throttling 'alve 6 by which the air supply can be turned on and off and regulated to maintain the desired pressure or air supply in the container.

In the example illustrated. the passages to and from the container for inlet of air and offtake of combustible mixture. are formed in or carried by the closure v :2, and the air supply and mixture offtake pipes are coupled to and carried by said closure. In this example, the closure 2 carries or is formed with a metal block or body 7. one end of which has a socket receiving the outletend of the casing of valve (3 while the ,air supply pipe opens into and is coupled into the receiving end of the casing of valve 6. The opposite end of said block or body 7 is formed with a socket receiving the inlet end of offtake pipe 5.

Provision is made in any suitable manner or by any suitable means. for various passages for delivery of compressed air from pipe 4 into the body of liquid in the container, and into the space above said liquid. and into the combustible mixture offtake. and for the offtake of combustible mixture from the space above "the liquid to pipe 5. and also for inanually actuated valve means whereby flow of air through said various air passages an be controlled to attain and maintain the combustible mixture passing off through pipe 5 of approximately the desired proportions or richness in hydrocarbon.

A vertical straight air pipe 8 in open communication with the air supply pipe 4 (through valve 6) is provided to discharge air into the liquid'in the container. In the example illustrated, the open lower end of pipe 8 is arranged near the bottom of the container and the upper end of the pipe is secured in the block 7 of the closure 2 in open communication with the valve 6 through air duct or passage 9 drilled or otherwise provided in said block.

Air forced into pipe- 8 under suitable pressure, will expel the liquid from the pipe and bubble up through the liquid in the container and thereby carry a suitable proportion of the hydrocarbon into the air in the space above the container. This carburetted air passes into pipe 5 through offtake passage or duct- 10 in the closure 2 and opening through the bottom face of the block 7 which forms the top wall of said space above the liquid in the container. In the example illustrated, the inlet end of pipe 5 liorizontally enters block 7, and the passage 10 is vertical and has a lateral outlet to the inner end of pipe 5 which outlet is alined with said pipe end.

The outlet end of the air supply pipe 4 (including valve 6) also horizontally enters block 7 and the passage 9 includes a horizontal upper portion alined with said end of pipe 4. This horizontal upper portion of the duct or passage is also included in a straight air distributing duct 11 extending longitudinally through the block 7 from the outlet end of pipe 4 to the inlet end of pipe 5 and alined therewith and including the upper lateral end of outlet duct 10. This duct or passage 11 includes a straight restricted or jet portion 11 forming a discharge nozzle from the main portion of duct 11 into the inlet end of pipe 5.

A compressed air discharge is provided from distributing duct 11 into the space in the container above the liquid, and this discharge is from that portion of duct 11 between restricted outlet 11" and inlet 9 to pipe 8.

In the particular embodiment shown, this discharge into said space is formed by a duct 12 communicating with air distributing duct 11 and extending down therefrom and opening into a short or stub tube 12 depending from block 7 and closed except for a restricted air outlet 12 into said space. The capacity of discharge 12 is usually approximately the same as that of jet duct 11 and discharge 12" is preferably located a distance down in the container below the horizontal plane in which the inlet end of duct 10 is located.

The controlling or distributing valve means, hereinbefore referred to, is provided to control and cut off the flow of air through discharge outlets 11 12 and consequently the flow of air through pipe 8, and in the example illustrated, said means embodies a three way plug or. rotary valve 14 constituting the junction or means of communication from distributing duct 11 to discharges 11, 12

The block 7' is transversely bored or otherwise formed to receive and constitute a cas ing and valve seat for said valve. The valve is provided with an exterior handle 15 at one side face of the block 7 and also with an exterior radial pointer or indicating finger 16 movable with the valve and over said side face of the block which side face can be formed to provide a dial or index for said pointer to indicate the various operative. positions of the valve.

The valve plug is formed with a diametrical air duct 145 arranged to place the-air distributing ductll in communication with the air discharge 11, and with a radial air duct 14 extending at right angles from duct let and arranged to place distributing duct 11 in communication with air discharge 12* when the valve is in a certain position, say with the pointer 16 at its limit of upward movement. The outlet port of valve passage 14 is restricted and the valve arrangement is such that when the valve is turned (rotated) to swing pointer 16 downwardly, the air discharge 11 will be cut off and closed from air distributing duct 11 while discharge 12 remains in open communication with duct 11 when the pointer reaches a position about midway its range of movement. \Vhen the valve is in this position, discharge of air into outlet duct 10 at 11 will be stopped but air will continue to discharge into the container at 12 On continuing to turn the valve to swing the pointer down, the valve will completely cut off flow of air from duct 11 to discharge 12, (the air discharge at ll remaining cut off) when the pointer reaches its limit of downward movement. The purpose of the valve and air discharge outlets controlled thereby. is to provide means whereby a proper burning mixture can be maintained at the point of use with various qualities of gasoline and with varying air pressures in the carburetor or container 1, and whereby a proper combustible mixture can be quickly provided at the point of use on starting up the air pressure even though the container has just been filled with gasoline.

If the mixture in the container above the gasoline is over rich in hydrocarbon, the mixture is diluted by the direct introduction of air to increase the proportion of air in the mixture without passing such air through pipe 8 and the body of gasoline. This resuit is attained by setting the valve 14 to position (indicated by the pointer atits upper limit) to permit discharge of air from distributing duct 11 through discharges 11, 12". The air entering at 12 dilutes the mixture in the container and increases the pressure in the container and thereby forces the mixture to discharge through duct 10. The air discharged at 11 also dilutes the mixture and accelerates the outflow to pipe The relief of pressure in duct 11 through air discharge 11 12", serves to prevent the pressure in pipe 8 necessary to force the air therefrom into the gasoline in the container.

This over rich condition of the combustible mixture in the container usually exists immediately after the container has been refilled with gasoline, and hence when the device is first used after fillin the valve is usually adjusted to the position shown in Fig. 1, to admit air to the offtake as well as to the container, and proper mixture conditions at the point of use can be quickly attained on starting the apparatus, withous wasting fuel. Then. the condition of the torch. flame (if the mixture is being used in a torch) indicates that the combustible mixture is becoming leanj the operator turns the valve 14 to the r ght to bring the pointer to the. intermediate position.

The discharge passage 11 is thusclosed, which results in an increase in pressure in the passage 11 and a greater quantity of air bein discharged from the pipe 8 into the gaso ine. This will increase the proportion of gasoline in the mixture formed. If, with the valve 14 in this position the mixture is still too lean, the operator may turn the valve to the right, gradually closing the passage 12. This will cause a gradual increase in the amount of air passing through the pipe 8 into the gasoline and a decrease in the amount passing through 12 to the space above the fuel. This will cause a gradual enriching of the mixture. If desired, the valve may be moved to the position shown in Fig. 4 in which passage 12 is entirely cut off.

During the operation of the carburetor, the valve 14 can be manipulated back and forth as condition of the flame requires, to

produce the desired combustible mixture.

and to take care of variations in the air pressure.

By providing air discharges 12 and 11*, a most thorough mixing of the air and hydrocarbon is attained even when air is not being forced through pipe 8. and furthermore by my arrangements of valve, and passages controlled thereby, I am enabled to successfully use various grades of gasoline and my device is not limited to use with only high grade or high test gasoline.

It is evident that various changes, modifications and variations might be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as defined in the claims, and hence I do not wish to limit myself to the exact disclosures hereof nor to the formation of air passages by ducts in a block.

\Vhat I claim is 1. A carburetor embodying a liquid container having an air tube arranged to discharge into the liquid in the container, and means providing a combustible mixture offtake from the container, an air supply passage to said tube having branch passages dischargin into said off-take and into'the con tainer above the liquid line, and cut off and controlling valve means whereby both or one of said discharges can be closed from and opened to the air supply, the discharge into the off-take being arranged to accelerate the outflow through said off-take.

2. A carburetor comprising a liquid container, a tube for discharging air into the liquid in the container, means providing a combustible mixture off-take and an air supply passage, said passage having a branch discharge into and approximately alined longitudinally with said oif-take and a separate branch discharging into the container above the liquid, and valve means for controlling the passage of air through said branches.

3. A carburetor comprising a hydrocarbon liquid container adapted to be partly filled with liquid to provide an air space above said liquid, a carbureted air oif-take from the air space in the container, means for carbureting air in said container, and means for diluting the carbureted air in said space embodying a compressed air passage having a discharge into said space and another discharge into said oif-take and a manually controlled valve whereby air can be supplied to both discharges, or air to the discharge into the off-take can be cut oif while air is supplied to the discharge into said space, or air to both discharges can be cut off.

4. A carburetor comprising a liquid container adapted to be partly filled with liquid to provide an air space above said liquid, means providing an oiftake passage from the air space in the container, a compressed air passage having an outlet to means to discharge air into the liquid in the container, and also having a restricted air dis charge into said otftake and a restricted a1r discharge into said space, and a manually operated three-way cut off and controlling valve interposed between said passage and said discharges and controlling said discharges. said valve having operative positions with the air passage open to both discharges, with the passage closed to the disadapted to be partly filled with liquid to pasprovide an air space above said liquid, atop for said container provided with an offtake from the space above the liquid in the container, a tube for discharging air into the liquid, a compressed air supply passage in open communication with said tube and having an air discharge outlet into said offtake and another air discharge into said space, and a manually operated plug valve for closing and opening the air discharge from said passage to said outlets.

6. In a carburetor, a liquid container adapted to be partly filled with liquid to provide an air space above said liquid. said container having a top providing a combustible mixture otftake from the space in the container above the liquid. a compressed air outlet into the liquid, a lateral compressed air outlet into said space at a point remote from the otftake and from the liquid, a compressed air outlet into said ofitake, and manually operated valve means operable to supply compressed air to all of said outlets, or to all of said outlets excepting that to the oiftake', or only to said outlet into the liquid.

7. A carburetor comprising a container adapted to be partly filled with liquid to provide an air space above said liquid, the said container having a top provided with an ofitake from the space above the body of liquid in the container, a tube for discharging air into the body of liquid in the container. a compressed air supply passage in open communication with said tube and extending to and terminating in a valve controlled air discharge passage communicating with said ofitake, and a valve controlled air discharge passage communicating with said air supply passage and discharging air into said space above the liquid in the container and of approximately the same capacity as said jet discharge.

8. A carburetor comprising a container adapted to be partly filled with liquid to provide an air space above said liquid, said container having a top provided with a carlmreted air olttake from the space above a body of liquid in said container, a tube for discharging air into the liquid. a restricted air discharge passage communicating with said ofltake, a compressed air supply pas sage in open communication with said tube, a restricted discharge passage communicating with said compressed air supply pas sage for discharging air into the space above the liquid, and means controlling said restricted discharge passage to said offtake and said discharge passage leading into the space above the liquid, respectively, the said controlling means arranged so that said restricted dlscharge passage is opened simultaneously with the opening of said discharge passage leading into the space above the liquid.

THERON HALE LEET. 

